'Game of Thrones' Season 7 finale mini-recap: An epic downfall

Warning: This mini-recap for “The Dragon and the Wolf” episode of Game of Thronescontains spoilers.

Sometimes all it takes to destroy an enormous, magic-infused ice wall is simply an undead dragon. Yes, just as we’d assumed would happen, the Night King rode his new, reanimated pet toward Eastwatch and incinerated a huge section of the wall with blue flames! The sequence ended Game of Thrones‘ occasionally shaky seventh season with a sense of awe and terror that truly sets up the urgency of the final six episodes. Winter may have already arrived, but now so have the White Walkers.

Those final few moments weren’t even the most important in “The Dragon and the Wolf.” Probably the most talked about (and fanfic-satisfying) sex scene in Game of Thrones history finally happened: Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen got it on! But in true Game of Thrones fashion, the erotic interlude was narrated by Bran, who confirmed that Jon Snow was definitely the true heir to the Targaryen throne and therefore Daenerys’s nephew! Few things are as steamy as incest on this show.

Unfortunately, the steaminess of incest wasn’t enough to keep Cersei and Jaime’s relationship afloat, as we saw her stoop to her lowest moment yet: sentencing her twin brother to die for treason. Her rationale was foggy at best, but it arrived after Jaime attempted to dutifully carry out her order to help Daenerys and Jon Snow fight the White Walkers. In a rare showing of integrity and leadership, Cersei took one look at Jon Snow’s captured wight and pledged her forces to assist in any way they could. Except, nope, it was all a lie, and when Jaime objected to her deviousness she gave Ser Gregor the nod to take care of him. Ugh, what a family.

By far the most satisfying moment in “The Dragon and the Wolf” happened in Winterfell when — thank the old gods — we learned that Arya and Sansa had grown wise to Littlefinger’s manipulations and put him on trial for murder and treason, ultimately leading to Arya executing him! Even better, Arya and Sansa made up and appeared to be a solid team moving forward. In other words, the terrible, borderline ruinous Winterfell scenes from last week are now looking to be worth it in retrospect! Barely.

Anyway, this is just the tip of the ornate dagger, so be sure to check back soon for our full photo recap!